


The Gift of Dragons

by StoneAndRoses



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Angst, Auror Harry Potter, Care of Magical Creatures, Dark Magic, Dragons, Drama, Explicit Language, F/M, Flashbacks, Fluff, Gift Fic, Harry Potter Epilogue What Epilogue | EWE, Humor, Romance, Sexual Content
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-28
Updated: 2020-07-10
Packaged: 2021-02-27 21:29:05
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 7
Words: 15,445
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22912510
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StoneAndRoses/pseuds/StoneAndRoses
Summary: Charlie Weasley is the Director and Chief Handler at the new Great British Dragon Sanctuary which Hermione Granger worked for years to establish. Given their past, couldn’t the Ministry have picked anyone else? Literally, anyone? Well maybe anyone but her ex-fiance, who’s next in line.
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Charlie Weasley
Comments: 32
Kudos: 173





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Belisama](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Belisama/gifts).



> My dear, sweet, amazing friend and beta Belisama's birthday is one week away! To celebrate I'll be posting this gift fic one chapter at a time, with the final one on her big day. I hope I did your favorite pairing justice!

**Nott Manor, Somerset, England**

“It’s just not enough,  _ Theodore _ .”

“What else am I supposed to do, Hermione? Take a bloody unbreakable vow? We’re engaged. If you can’t take my word that I’ve given up my time experiments and I haven’t been in contact with any of the old Death Eaters in ages,” shouted her very angry fiance, but she began to tune out his excuses.

How had she gotten here? How had it come to this? She was standing in the receiving hall of Nott Manor trying to break up with her Slytherin fiance. Well, she knew how it had started.

They had run into each other, literally, in Flourish and Blotts. Both were rushing to get their hands on the same recently published book on poisonous plants that were all the rage in the 1700’s but were making a comeback in the medical community. It was very niche and she assumed (incorrectly) she wouldn’t have to fight anyone over the limited copies of the book. 

From there he had taken her to dinner, insisting that he was rude to her in the shop and had to make it up to her. The perfect pureblood heir. And like a dimwitted school girl she had gotten enchanted by the romance of how the racist upper-crust of wizarding society lived. Sure she had to avoid many attendees of the balls, but she was too starstruck to care. Theodore understood her because he was also a quiet bookworm. Definitely not as smart as she was, but he was clever in his own way.

She’d never paid much mind to him in school. And until recently she’d allowed him to sweep her off her feet and she had been preparing to become Lady Nott when Harry had shown up in her office. 

“I know about Lucius, Theodore.”

_ “He’s lying to you Hermione,” said her best friend, slapping a thick file down on her desk. _

_ “Not this again,” she started with a sigh. Ever since she had agreed to marry Theo, Harry had been hellbent on proving that her new betrothed was up to something.  _

_ Her best friend looked at her with pleading eyes. “Hermione. I know you trust me, and I trust you. With my life, with Ginny’s, James’, many times over. But I don’t trust him. He’s been working on the boundaries of legality for a while now.” _

_ “You know as well as I do Harry that the Ministry overreacted after the war and hasn’t had the common sense to adjust since then.” Her defense was weak at best. It was what she told herself to ensure she could sleep at night. _

_ “He’s in contact with Lucius Malfoy.” _

_ Now that got her attention. He had told her in no uncertain terms he was not in contact with any former Death Eaters. With the exception of Draco Malfoy, who barely counted. She was better friends with Draco than Theo was. _

_ “No,” she whispered, reaching for the file. _

_ “It’s all there Hermione. He’s building time turners. That’s why he quit the DOM. That’s why he won’t let you in the basement. And I think he’s contracting with underground dark wizards. Including  _ _ him _ _ Hermione. The one we couldn’t catch.” _

_ “But nobody knows where he is… you can’t find him. You told me yourself…” _

_ “Theo must have found a way, or he got into contact with Theo,” he said shrugging. “Again, I trust you, but please don’t let love make you stupid again. Theo’s trouble.” _

_ “Again?” she questioned, arching her eyebrow. _

_ “Sparrows. Lavender Brown. Ronald.” _

_ “Okay, okay. I’ll talk to him.” _

That’s how she found herself in this ‘conversation.’ Shouting match was more accurate. 

“He’s harmless. Lucius has magic stripping bracelets on and you know it.”

“Lucius does,” she admitted. “But Dolohov doesn’t. In fact, the Ministry doesn’t officially know where dear old Atonin is. I wonder how you managed to get an owl to him.”

She heard him mutter something along the lines of “bloody Potter and his bloody aurors.”

“It’s just a way to make money Hermione.”

“No!” she screamed. “That man almost killed me. Twice. You’ve seen the scars he left. You  _ know _ he’s the reason I can’t risk having children. Why would you do this? Why would you keep this secret from me?” She was starting to get emotional, tears were leaking down the sides of her cheeks. 

“You want to talk about bloody secrets? I’m not the only one keeping them. You stay late at the office constantly. And you mumble in your sleep. It’s normally not my name, it’s someone else. You say you can’t trust me, but can I trust you?” The bastard was smirking at her like he had won. 

She slowly took the gaudy family ring off her finger and tossed it at his feet. The precious gems and metals were  _ probably _ more durable than the ancient marble floors, but really she didn’t care if it incurred any damage. 

“Keep it,” she said. “I don’t want it anymore. Not if the house still stands for what it used to. And based off of recent evidence, I don’t think it’s ready for a  _ mudblood _ to be mixed in.”

And just like that, she walked out the front door and just outside the gate, apparating back to Number 12 Grimmauld Place in London.

**Outside Brasov, Romania**

“He didn’t make it Charlie.”

How could he have been so bloody stupid? How did he get here? 

Charlie Weasley’s best mate had died out in the field. Charlie knew he had been too tired. He had tried convincing Jameson that he shouldn’t go out, to let him take the shift instead. They were running on adrenaline just like every other day. 

He was getting too old. Not in the general wizarding sense, but in the running around with dragons sense. He’d been tempted recently to take up Minerva’s offer to teach Care of Magical Creatures, but perhaps that was too much of a change too quickly. Going from open air and tents with huge beasts to musty castles and children was probably not quite the change he needed. 

Then he thought back to a meeting with his boss last week. 

_ “Where does your family live again Weasley?” asked Petrescu.  _

_ “Devon, England sir,” he replied. Charlie assumed he had been called in for the stupid maneuver he made last night. But apparently his boss was going to butter him up first.  _

_ “Long way from here. Can’t apparate that can you?” _

_ “No, sir. It takes two portkeys. One to the edge of the continent and one across the pond.” _

_ “I’m sure your mother hates that.” _

_ Charlie smirked, “That she does. But I think she may have finally accepted it now.” _

_ “What if you were a little closer to home? What would she think about that?” _

_ Charlie’s brows furrowed together. “Sir?” _

_ “They’re opening a new reserve. In Scotland. If I’m not mistaken that’s apparating distance?” _

_ “That it is.” _

_ “Good. Your closer proximity to home notwithstanding, you’re my best man here Weasley. They need a strong leader and someone with a good head on their shoulders to help get it off the ground. I’d like to suggest you for Director and Chief Handler. You’d select staff, train everyone, and coordinate with the Ministry as everything gets going. It’s a two year contract. What do you say?” _

_ Charlie was stunned into silence. A rare occurrence. Although many people described him as thoughtful, he always spoke his mind. But this, this was going to be something to mull over.  _

_ “Give me a week?” _

It had been a week, and now, especially with this news, he knew what to do. The new keepers were moving in at a greater frequency and they were getting younger and younger. His baby sister had a baby of her own, almost all his siblings were married, and he missed some folks fiercely.

“Sir? Is that referral still good?”

“It is lad, it is.


	2. Chapter 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I missed yesterday's daily update because of work and celebrating the Birthday Girl herself! So here's a double update to keep us on track ;)

**Ministry of Magic, London, England**

She was running late. Hermione Granger, war heroine, smartest witch of her age, one third of the golden trio, and self appointment kneazle lady was never late. Except today. She had stopped by her favorite coffee shop on the way to the Ministry of Magic and they had made her drink wrong three times. Today was not a day to break her painstakingly crafted schedule. 

Today her fledgling project of protecting more magical creatures was getting off the ground, finally, on the wings of dragons no less. The Welsh Green population had been dwindling since the Triwizard Tournament, and Hermione thought they needed to do something about it. If this, her golden egg so to speak, could get going there was no telling how many other reforms she could work through the Wizengamot. They had given her sixth months to get it going, and promised another six months after that before they checked in on her progress. 

Wizarding Resources had been terribly hush-hush about the Director hiring process, which really was absurd. She was committing to working with this person for an entire year and she had no say about them. They hadn’t even given her the resumes submitted to peruse. This morning’s meeting was with her and the new director as well as other members of the Department for the Well-being of Magical Creatures (obviously the name change was her first order of business once she wasn’t a quill pusher). 

And she was late. 

Breezing into the conference room, people were still milling about getting pastries, and the meeting hadn’t started. Thank Merlin. 

Blustered, she sat down in the middle of the table, paying no mind to the other witches and wizards around her. 

“Morning Curls.” A simple nickname got her to bolt upright, brain whirling with activity.

No. It couldn’t be. How could she have not considered this as a possibility? Obviously it had crossed her mind, but she assumed his free spirit would win out. 

“Charles. What are you doing here? Transition assistance for the reserve?”

He shook his head. He sat to her left, with stacks of folders in front of him. Charlie was as rugged as ever, but it had been a time since she’d seen him. Probably three, maybe four, Christmases? 

“Not quite, but I’m on board with the project. I wasn’t surprised to see that it was your doing in the first place, Granger. Always wanting to help.” He was smiling at her, but it wasn’t completely genuine. She couldn’t quite put her finger on why. “Including partially, but not completely reformed pure blood, ex-death eaters,” he added at a much lower volume. 

His swiftly crafted and delivered words felt like a bombarda to the chest. They hadn’t left each other on the best of terms last time they had spoken… but they were friendly. She was basically a Weasley herself. 

Before she could respond, Rufus Bagman, Ludo’s son, started the meeting. He had somehow weaseled his way into the Head of the Department role. She was deputy head. They didn’t quite see eye to eye, so she decided not to rock the broom.

“Welcome to the kick off meeting for the Great British Dragon Sanctuary, GBDS for short. Present is myself, Head of the Department, Hermione Granger Deputy Head of the department, and Charles-”

“Charlie,” cut in the flaming haired wizard.

“Charlie Weasley, Director and Chief Handler.”

Hermione almost spit out her prized peppermint mocha. This was not good. 

“Sorry for all the secrecy in hiring, but Miss Granger here made Wizarding Resources think really hard about blind hiring when she first applied. Granger, I’m sure you’ll be glad to hear this.” Bagman was smug. About everything. And he didn’t even have any idea about her past with Charlie. 

“Yes,” she hissed, her lips forming a tight line. Something she had tried to pick up from Minerva. “I’m glad that we’re not hiring based on name any longer, but they didn’t need to completely swing the pendulum,” she muttered. 

“Anywhomst,” started Bagman into a long monologue about the benefits and concerns about the reserve. His lack of grammar, and care in speaking, made Hermione tune him out. She had written most of the speaking points anyway. 

Merlin’s pants she was in a cauldron of trouble. She was also an idiot. How had she not considered Charlie bloody Weasley as a potential candidate. He was one of the foremost experts on dragons, and had by far the most field experience out of any dragonologist. And he was from the UK, really the obvious choice. 

“Isn’t that right, Hermione?” said Charlie as she was startled and realized she had stopped listening at all for appropriate cues. So much for her blasted thrice-made mocha. 

“Yes, of course,” her response was non-committal and made it seem that she was aware of what’s going on. From the nodding around the table, it seemed that she had given the right answer. Nobody noticed, except Charlie Weasley.

He was smirking at her and now she was wondering what she really had agreed with. 

“Tell us about the property the Ministry has managed to acquire, Granger,” Bagman ordered. 

Of course all the real work on this project came from Hermione. She detailed the wonderful property they had found and bought from an old wizarding family who hadn’t had their manor there for generations. It had a thousand acres to encourage the reproduction and thriving of all types of creatures. Hopefully, and most importantly, the Welsh Green. 

After her spiel, they moved onto more logistics. 

“We’d like both you and Weasley to go out to the reserve and inspect the handler and medical facilities.”

Oh, joy. “Are, are you sure Bagman? I have some things to finish up her administration wise, can’t we send one of my assistants?”

“You know more about reserve and plans for the facilities than anyone else. It will take you half the time to inspect and navigate than one of your handmaids.” She knew he was annoyed that all her employees that directly reported to her were women, now she could confirm that it bothered him. Hopefully this would help in her case for head of the department in the future.

“Yes, but-”

He shook his head, “Granger, you admitted earlier that you and Charlie here have a great rapport already. You need to get out of the office anyways.” So that’s what she had nodded to.

“Let’s talk money,” suggested one of the talking heads in the room that she didn’t know. With the flick of a wand, it was decided. She was going to have to spend a few days, in a remote part of Scotland, with Charlie Weasley. And that was going to be a problem.

\------------

**Draco Malfoy’s Penthouse, Muggle London**

“Absolutely not, it’s only been three weeks since you freed yourself of that asshole ex-friend of mine Granger. You’re staying until you find the perfect place. I’ve obviously got plenty of space and I enjoy the company.”

Smug bastard. She knew that it had been a mistake to accept his offer of a room. She loved him, he was probably one of her best friends, but that was because he was annoyingly persistent. He had refused to hear about her staying at the Leaky, and he would not let her feel like she was invading the Potters’ privacy so close to the new baby coming. 

“Draco, that’s very nice of you… but I’m really okay with this apartment.”

“You’re not. And the last thing I want to happen is for you not to be supported.”

They toasted their glasses of wine and started to eat the delicious meal Tilly had prepared. The little elf was smitten with Hermione and cooked far too extravagant meals for her. 

“It’s just, I don’t want to bother you.”

The blonde laughed. He was actually smiling, and she found it made him look so much more mature. He never smiled as a child and it broke any type of illusion she had of him. Until they had worked together on a project, her making sure elves were considered in a new law and him finding her funding, she was adamantly opposed to speaking to him. Until he had stopped her and made her realize that he was not the bratty kid that Lucius Malfoy had brainwashed, she had never considered how smart he was. Or witty, even funny at times. He was a fiercely loyal friend, a snake-like trait, and had stuck by her throughout the entire Theo fiasco. When they had started dating, he had put in a word of warning, but also one of approval and she thought he still felt bad. 

“You’re not bothering me. You’re saving me from a pigsty, bachelor pad life. Hermione, you’re probably my best friend I don’t mind at all.”

She smiled and ate more food. He drained his wine glass and then looked at her expectantly. 

“That’s not all you wanted to talk about though, is it?”

Shite, he probably heard something at the Ministry today. 

“No, nothing of note.”

“Bloody hell you’re an awful liar, are all Gryffindor’s this bad? It’s like you’re not even a lion, you’re a badger.”

She stood and pulled her wand at him quickly but playfully. 

“Those are some fighting words if I ever heard them… plus Hufflepuff’s not so bad,” she said lowering her weapon.

He smirked at her, “No I guess not. But are you trying to tell me that Charlie Weasley, the name of the wizard that you mumble in your sleep when you get too drunk, getting hired to be the head of the project you’ve been working on for the last six months, and will probably be in charge of for most of your career, is… ‘nothing of note?’” 

“Nope, nothing of great importance. It’s my job, I’ll get through it like I always do.” She chugged the rest of her wine to make a point. Granted, not a very solid support of her claim, but it would get him to stop bothering her. “Now, pour me more wine.”

\------------

**Special Run of the Hogwarts Express, somewhere near the Scotland/England Border**

This was one time that Hermione Granger was not too thrilled that her contract with the Ministry stated she would not fly or use any type of creature-based transportation. Since Charlie had never been to the reserve before, it was secret-kept, and she did not particularly relish accidentally splinching another Weasley, they were taking the train to Hogsmeade and then apparating to Inverness. From there, Hermione would share a photo and the location and Charlie would follow her on his broom. 

It was far too complicated because she refused the offered Abraxan carriage and she refused to ride brooms with Charlie. They would be way too close in that scenario. Right now, they were sitting across from each other in the cabin that had been hooked up to the front cab of the Hogwarts Express. Minerva owed her a few favors, and the Scottish woman couldn’t say “no” to her favorite student. 

“Alright, Hermione,” Charlie said breaking the hour long silence that had been their train journey thus far. “Tell me about the department drama. I think I figured out most of it, but I want to know who will be a problem and who won’t.”

She sighed, “Well, as long as you don’t repeat what I’m about to say to anyone, I’ll let you in on the secret. I’m still not good at all the politicking.”

“My lips are sealed Curls.”

“Bagman is an idiot, but he’s a docile idiot,” she heard him snort, but she kept going. “He won’t do much to interfere unless all the powers that be gang up on him. Salazar knows he only got the job because of his father.”

To her surprise, the red head across from her was actually taking notes. With a muggle pen and notebook. She hoped surprise and slight approval wasn’t actually showing on her face. 

“The ladies who work for me are all good. They’re on board and for the most part just do as asked. They can think critically and for themselves, but they will not present issues for you. It’s the big wigs that’ll be the issue.”

“Of course, always the ones with the galleons that cause the most trouble.”

She rolled her eyes, “Obviously. Please try to play nice, and let me do most of the talking if we have to handle them. I’m a little better with people than you are.”

“Debatable, Granger. Just because I choose to spend all my time with dragons doesn’t mean I can’t talk or be empathetic.”

She snorted, “Ah yes, how could I forget about the well known Weasley charm? Aggressively convincing people of things since the early 1980’s.”

“Just because I don’t run away from my feelings, and am okay having confrontational conversations does not mean I’m aggressive, Curls.”

“Stop. Calling. Me. That.” She stood with her hands on the table between their benches. 

He stood, looking her straight in the eye, “Give me one good reason, other than we’re working together.”

“Because it’s rude to keep doing something when someone asks you to stop.” She couldn’t take more after her retort and retreated to the lady’s to try to get some peace and quiet. If she was already hiding in the loo after a couple hours total, how in the world was she going to survive the next few days?


	3. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's a double post day, so if you haven't read Chapter 1, take a step back and do that first!
> 
> We'll start getting to the bottom of some of the drama this chapter. It also involves a drunk Molly Weasley and some vague smut, I hope you enjoy :)

**Great British Dragon Sanctuary, Somewhere near Inverness, Scotland**

The plot of land they had gone with was absolutely breathtaking. There was so much space to roam, there was variability in the landscape, and it was in the middle of nowhere. Even without the heavily and frequently placed muggle repelling charms, it was unlikely anybody would wander onto the property on their own volition. 

Charlie had frozen in his place when he initially stepped inside the gates. A string of swear words ending with “wicked” as was Weasley custom flew out of his mouth. He claimed that it was so much better than the Romanian sanctuary, which she promptly wrote down in her journal. Any type of quote similar to that one would be helpful to her once she got in front of the Wizengamot. She knew that they were already most of the way there, but who knew what kind of pureblood nonsense would serve as a roadblock when she put her face in front of them.

She continued to dictate as they walked around. He didn’t have much to say about the living conditions, they were standard issue expanded tents, but able to be personalized easily. Charlie would have his own hut connected to his office and the research building via tunnel. “I don’t need anything special, Curls,” he complained. She would hear none of it, especially since it hadn’t been her idea. 

“Bagman seems to think you need easy access to everyone. Plus this setup lets everyone bother you whenever they need to. The portrait will alert you whenever someone can’t get a hold of you.”

“Great,” he said rolling his eyes. “Guess I need to get used to being the boss.”

He mounted his broom suddenly and pushed off to get a birds eye view. She tried to shout up to him and tell him it was no use, that there was anti-flame protections on the base camp as well as the field camps. 

“That’s fine and dandy, Curls, but I need to see the layout myself,” he called. 

The wizard was infuriating. Couldn’t he just trust her? She was a close family friend, not to mention the “Brightest Witch of her Age,” and was basically the head of the department. He was the dragon expert, which meant he was crazy enough to stay in the field long enough to become one of the best. Which in theory, meant he should look at everything, but she had designed this based off of the Romania reserve with feedback from former employees. Hermione had even read every single academic article that had been published since the 50’s on dragons. 

She probably knew more than he did. 

“I know you think you know more than me,” he said landing. “But just because you’ve read everything you could get your hands on, doesn’t mean you know how to apply it how you should.”

Was she that transparent? Her facial expressions really needed some work. 

“Yes, I'm only the Ministry's top creature expert... that’s why I’m here with you. It's my project and I've been over everything hundreds of times, if I say something's safe it's safe. I expected you to take my word for it.”

She hadn’t been looking where she was walking and walked into a solid hunk of wizard who was fuming down at her. 

“No. Taking someone’s word for it is how people die on a dragon reserve. No matter how good you are, or how well you know the dragon, assuming and not taking input is how you lose trainers.”

He turned quickly on his heel, calling over his shoulder that he wanted to see the other locations. 

By the time he had approved and made notes about everything it was dusk. They had been on their feet all day, as she refused to fly with him, and they had been verbally sparring for most of it. Although most of it had lost any sting or impact as the day wore on, they were bickering. But she was worried that this could still cause trouble. 

“You know, Charles-”

“Yes, Curls-”

“Ugh, will you quit it. I was about to try to make nice.”

His left eyebrow drew into a point on his forehead, “Nice?”

“Yes, nice.” She took a deep breath. This would be worth it, she needed to swallow her ego. “I want this project to be successful… We both do. So while I enjoy a bit of arguing-”

“Obviously.”

She gave him her best Molly Weasley look to shut him up, “We need to be careful in the office. We don’t need anyone to think that there’s something wrong with the way we work together. The… the worst thing that could happen is for someone to take this from me. It’s been my baby since I graduated from Hogwarts.”

She watched tension leave his body as she spoke. Was that all she needed to do? Prove to him that she was just as passionate about this as he was? Every single bone in her body was passionate, why would this project be any different? 

“I’m sorry Hermione, I was just testing you, seeing how far I could go. I’ve been told it’s one of my less than attractive qualities. I want everything to go well, I had a bit of a rough patch at the end of my time in Romania.” He was rubbing the back of his hand, kicking the ground aimlessly. He looked embarrassed, and she didn't want to press for more, this cease fire was temporary at best. 

“Truce?” she said extending her hand. 

“Truce,” he agreed. His large, rough hand engulfed hers in a firm but friendly handshake. “You’re coming to the Burrow, right?”

“Yes, sir. I missed last month's dinner, so I think Molly might actually kill me if I miss tonight.”

He laughed and offered his arm. She looked at it slightly concerned. “It’s safe, I promise. I’ve been practicing.”

She took a deep breath. For all his magic with dragons, apparating had never been Charlie’s strong suit. But Hermione reasoned that she would be trusting him with the success of her career, so she could trust him to take her somewhere. 

Taking his arm, with a loud crack, they took off for England. 

\------------

**The Burrow, Ottery St Catchpole, Devon, England**

Molly Weasley’s level of hospitality knew now bounds, literally. She always made too much food, insisted you fill your plate, and then attempted to shove dessert down your throat. Then one of the older boys would inevitably break out butterbeer and firewhiskey. Even though Hermione never wanted to stay past midnight, she always did. 

Reminiscing was always a favorite activity, but quidditch was also a common topic. She had tuned out the latest news on Puddlemere's chances at the playoffs, and instead was reflecting on her former flame. She was glad her friend had alerted her to Theo’s misdeeds, but she was worried about him. Hopefully he wouldn’t do anything too stupid, but she was unsure. 

A commotion of insults broke her out of her thoughts, George had showed up very late, and slightly tipsy. 

“How was your date, brother? Woo the pants off her?” asked Bill, smirking into his tumbler. 

“Not quite,” replied the earless twin. “I’m not sure it was worth my time. She was nice, but not really my type.”

“You don’t have a type,” bemoaned Molly. “At this rate, you’ll never give me grandchildren.”

Hermione rolled her eyes. Molly already had five grandchildren, with another one coming from Harry and Ginny soon, and she wouldn’t be surprised if Ron and Lavender announced that they would be adding to the count. The Weasley matriarch had no reason to give George a hard time. 

“Mum, I’m just trying to get WWW under control, then I’ll think about settling down.” 

“Your brother has done plenty to help with that. You’re not getting any younger,” Molly said surveying the room. Her eyes stopped at Hermione, and she launched into her misguided attempt to once again set up her and George. “You just need someone smart, someone who can keep up with you… maybe even someone who already knows your terrible habits… Hermione dear, have you found a date since moving on from young Theodore?”

Harry laughed, “Nice try Molly, but you know there’s a moratorium on that name in this household. And give her a break.”

“Yeah, mum. It’s none of your business,” added Charlie. 

“Well, she may not be, but you are my boy. If only you didn’t like men, you would be an even better choice for our dear Hermione. George seems to be disinterested, I assume you are too?”

Charlie turned bright red, and looked away. “Yeah, mum, still working to find that boyfriend.”

Hermione had a very difficult time holding it together. Charlie sounded less and less convincing every time he spoke with Molly. Since his mother was somewhat more conservative, he had once told her that he liked men to get her to leave him alone about finding a wife. But she had apparently gotten over the awkwardness and was ready to find him a man. 

“Not that I’m not flattered Molly, but I’m more focused on work,” Hermione pitched in. 

“But you and Charles would make such beautiful babies,” whined Molly. “Maybe you’ll change his mind. Work on that chemistry while you work together-”

“Alright dear,” said Arthur stepping in. “I think it’s time for bed, that's right put your wine glass down.”

Thank Merlin. Hermione was liable to transfigure into a tomato if Molly had kept going, her face was halfway there now. She was avoiding eye contact, but Harry was burning a hole in her sweater with the look he was shooting across the room. 

“Make sure you all floo home safely. But Hermione, there’s always room in Charles’ room if you need it!” she added as she was marched up the stairs by Arthur. 

“I need more tea,” mumbled Hermione escaping for the kitchen. 

Harry followed her in and cornered her by the sink. 

“So,” he started. “Want to tell me why you _and_ Charlie were blushing so much in front of Molly? You’re both going to blow his cover.”

“Well, it’s complicated,” she said vaguely. 

“Complicated?”

“Complicated. We’re working together.”

Harry laughed, “Well everyone knows that.”

“Yes, but we know each other, from before that.”

He laughed again. “You normally don’t make this many obvious statements, which means your lying, or at the very least withholding something. You’re losing your touch. Of course you do, you’re basically part of the Weasley family.”

“That’s why it’s complicated.” She sighed. She frequently had to remind him he was not allowed to interrogate friends and family, but she figured that she might as well stop while she was ahead. Maybe Draco would teach her to lie better. “Do you remember the last Christmas Charlie was here for?”

“Yeah,” he said nodding. “It was right after we graduated, right?”

“Yes,” she said. “Well, we might have-” she mumbled the rest of it into her tea mug. 

“Come again?”

“We hooked up okay.”

Harry’s eyes grew to the size of quaffles. “You? And Charlie Weasley? Had sex?”

“Yes, and it was bloody brilliant.” Oops, that was probably too much detail for him. 

“So you’re not together… why? Molly's observation wasn't too far off, you both would make sense together.” She laughed at this statement, Harry Potter fancied himself an expert in relationships, despite the fiasco with Cho and only dating one witch since then.

She sighed again. “It’s complicated.”

“You keep saying that without explaining anything.”

“Well…”

_On Christmas morning Hermione groaned and rolled over, or at least tried to. There was a heavy weight on her hip making any tip of shifting difficult. Blinking slowly, the squinted, trying to figure out what and or who had made their way into her bed._

_However, the blue walls reminded her that she was not in her bed, she was in Charlie’s._

_The night before came flying back to her. They had been the only two left downstairs with the spiked eggnog. Everyone was a little sad and had been heavy in their cups. She had begged off going upstairs so that Ginny and Harry could have some alone time, and Charlie had been on the night shift the week before, he claimed he couldn’t sleep._

_The two had parked themselves on opposite ends of the couch, polishing off the gingerbread men from the feast earlier in the evening. Between talking about small things, how her final exams had gone, which dragons were making trouble on the reserve, they began to realize, they didn’t know each other very well._

_Sure they had spent holidays together on occasion while she had been in school, but Charlie begged off more often than not, staying in Romania. Hermione started the ‘get to know you game’ and they soon learned each others’ favorite books, colors, seasons, and food._

_“Alright, ‘Mione”_

_“Don’t. Call. Me. That.”_

_He looked at her confused. Had he been that close when they had started their conversation?_

_“But my brother calls you that… I thought-”_

_“Ronald,” she said with a foul taste in her mouth, “Barely gets away with it. I’m constantly telling him not to.”_

_He scratched his chin jokingly, “Curls then. Now that I know you better, I feel like I can ask you about your dragon riding experience. Your first I assume?”_

_“Yes,” she said, shaking her head at the nickname. “Why not start with that? It seems like that experience is probably our most obvious point in common besides your brother.”_

_“I feel like asking someone about their first… intimate… experience with dragons is fairly personal. How would you describe flying on that dragon?”_

_Upon reflection with his words bouncing around in her head, she bought his argument. “That’s fair. Once I got over the paralyzing fear pulsing through my veins, it was probably as close to a religious experience that I’ve had. We had no control, but it was peaceful once we got out of London. I wasn’t afraid of the dragon, I was afraid of who might chase it, or what might become of the wonderful beast if Gringotts attempted to pursue her. It was one of the few times I've ever completely relinquished control in my entire life.”_

_“That’s beautiful.” He looked deep in thought staring into his mug. “I enjoy when I find someone willing to share their experience with me. I interact with the creatures so much that I sometimes feel like I take it for granted. These stories help ground me.”_

_“You’re doing great work, Charlie,” she said covering his hand with hers. “And it’s something not many people are willing to do.”_

_“I’m glad you see it that way, you’re going to do great things yourself, you know. Hell, you already have.” He turned his hand over, grasping hers. “Are you still feeling the eggnog?”_

_“Not really, no. My head has cleared up.”_

_“I would hope so, it’s almost two in the morning.”_

_She fell onto the couch sideways, demonstrating her feelings about the late hour, her head landing on top of Charlie’s thigh. “We should probably call it a night then. Nothing good happens at two AM.”_

_He smirked down at her, “Well, I wouldn’t say nothing.” He paused and kept smiling, tilting his head to assess her situation. She rolled to face him. “Hermione, can I kiss you?”_

_She had been surprised by the question. Surely none of Ron's brothers saw her that way, but then again her other best friend would be marrying one of Ron's siblings very soon. She briefly considered and nodded her head. He was fit and she wouldn't be saying no to a kiss._

_He leaned down, sliding his hand into her curls and wrapping it around her neck. He pulled her up to him slightly and they met for a sensual and charged first kiss. He pulled back slowly, massaging her neck with his hand._

_"Of course you're bloody good at everything," he muttered and dove back in._

_After that it was a flurry of more kisses, hands, and shirts. His muscles flexed under her hands, twitching whenever she found the right spot. Then he was carrying her upstairs, mumbling about being struck down by lightning if he ever did anything untoward on his mother’s couch._

_It had been an amazing night full of teasing tongues, orgasms, and getting to know each other in a much more pleasurable way. When they finally nodded off around four, she was exhausted and sore in the most delicious way._

_However, the dream ended quickly when Charlie had been awkward when they both were awake. Avoiding her gaze, rushing into the shower, and then downstairs for breakfast. By dinner he was gone. He hadn’t told anyone he was leaving, he had just taken his portkey back to the reserve. Molly was beside herself and Hermione didn’t know what to think._

“Is Hermione finally telling you that she shagged one of my brothers, surprisingly not named Ronald?” said Ginny walking into the kitchen. 

“You knew?” asked Hermione in genuine shock. She thought she had hidden it well, and Charlie certainly hadn’t said anything. 

“Luna Lovegood could have noticed the chemistry between you two,” said the redhead, laughing. “I was suspicious when he left so suddenly at Christmas and didn’t come to any after that. How's working together going?” The witch had the audacity to smirk at her question. 

“We’ll bloody well see, won’t we?”


	4. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We've officially made it to Belisama's birthday week! And to celebrate, we've got a chapter with a little drama, but I promise there are good things coming. 
> 
> I'm so appreciative of the love this story has received so far, and I'm doing my best to keep up with all your comments and feedback. You're making this writer feel really good about herself. 
> 
> I hope you all enjoy!

**The Ministry of Magic, London, United Kingdom**

Hermione had been called into a meeting unexpectedly this morning. They were about two months away from the reserve officially opening. Everything had been going relatively smoothly and had absolutely no idea why Bagman had called her into his office. 

Since the dinner at the Weasley’s and their initial tour of the reserve, Hermione and Charlie had come to an awkward understanding of some sort. They worked smoothly in front of other people, and they only had minor tiffs when it was just the two of them. 

The latest small argument had been about the types of food that would be flown into the reserve. 

_ “Hermione, people who sign up for this type of work are used to roughing it,” insisted the annoying red head in front of her. She was sitting in his guest chair of his office while he looked across the large oak desk at her.  _

_ “Yes, but if we want to attract the best and make sure that we retain people, we should treat them well,” she insisted. He had agreed on all the benefits except this. Which honestly, didn’t make any sense.  _

_ He sighed, “I see where you’re coming from, but I’d rather put that increase in budget into health supplies and an extra medical specialist.” _

_ “But it’s not an increase, I worked this into the original budget,” she said fuming. He wasn’t listening to her. She was going to make this happen.  _

_ “Trust me, the food isn’t going to make a difference, but making sure we’re safe will.” _

_ “We. Can. Have. Both,” she argued, pounding the side of her fist into the wood after each word. “Draco helped me find another family for funding, and it’s been allotted to another full time medi-witch. If you had read the entirety of my owl message, you would know that, Charles.” _

_ To his benefit, he looked scolded. Once he got over his embarrassment, letting her charged statement hang for a while between them, he whispered, “I could kiss you Curls, hiring is going to be a dream.” _

And hiring had gone well. Charlie was spending his time training them right now. She had assisted some with the curriculum, making sure there was a certification at the end. She wanted everything to be above board. She wanted absolutely no reason for the project to take a different direction or get shut down. 

Pushing those sad thoughts out of her head, she knocked on her ‘boss’” office door. 

“Come in, Granger,” said Bagman in a gruff voice. 

A chill ran down her spine when the door was open. Theodore Nott was standing facing her from in front of one of Bagman’s visitor seats. Scum of the earth attorney Blaise Zabini stood next to him, checking her out. 

“The least you could have done is given me some time to prepare, or tell me what this is about,” she said to her boss, ignoring the new members in the room. 

“This just came to my attention, Granger. I don’t even know what this is about, so let’s hear these gentlemen out.”

She scoffed, “Yes,  _ gentlemen _ , let’s hear what this is about. I’m hoping you’ll cover how you paid yourself into this last second meeting.”

Theo looked like he wanted to strangle her already. Luckily Zabini jumped in. 

“Granger, Granger, Granger, of course you haven’t worked on your filthy manners. I’d be careful what you say to the future director of the GBDS.”

She smirked, “Charlie Weasley is doing his job on the reserve right now, I don’t see him here nor have I said anything to him in the last five minutes.”

“Frankly,” drawled the former Slytherin and current slimeball, “I’m shocked that the Ministry even hired that man. He’s severely underqualified.”

Bagman looked like he wanted to say something and take care to tread lightly, but her supremacist ex-fiance would not be getting away with this.

“Underqualified? Besides pulling the Romanian or Canadian directors out of their positions, which would have been incredibly irresponsible, Charles Weasley is the best man for the job.”

“You're letting your friendship cloud your judgement, again,” muttered Theo. 

“Excuse me?” she said. “Could you speak up, I can’t understand your mumbling.”

“We’ve pulled Weasley’s file from Romania. There seem to be some discrepancies between what he said he was qualified to do and what his supervisor noted. He may not be the man you think he is Granger,” said Theo looking smug.

“And that’s why,” cut in Blaise, keeping Hermione from defending Charlie’s honor. “We’re filing an official investigation with the Wizengamot. The six month hearing is being moved up to the four month date.”

“That’s next week!” she cried. 

Theo smiled, “Yes, so I suggest you get your sweet little life together. If the Wizengamot rules in our favor, I’ll be nominating myself to take over the project in conjunction with you Hermione.”

She wanted to apparate out of the office immediately. The last thing she wanted was for Theo to get his clammy hands on her baby. She would probably have to quit, which would be incredibly difficult to hand over the protection of magical creatures to someone getting their feet wet in the black market. 

Blaise dropped a stack of folders from a significant height onto Bagman’s desk and the two snakes left. Once the door shut, Bagman turned to her. 

“Now Hermione, I know that Nott running things might cause problems -”

She looked at him with the “no really?” look she had taught him and perfected over the last few years in the department. 

He decided to press on, “But I thought you said Weasley was doing well, why would you suggest him?”

She couldn’t believe how fair weathered the head of the department was. Apparently his father had shown him the ropes. “Bagman, I would like to remind you that I had no idea who Wizarding Resources was hiring. It was a blind hire. All I’ve told you and recorded in my reports is that he was a good choice. He’s ahead of schedule, thank Circe. I’ll be paying him a visit so we can plan for this Salazar forsaken hearing.”

“You’re up to snuff Granger. But just in case, take these folders and review them.”

By the time she was out of Bagman’s office, her head was swimming. This was an unexpected block in the road that she did not want. 

“How does it feel now, Granger?” came Theo’s voice. Maybe he was haunting her. She was starting to hear his voice everywhere.

Unfortunately he was actually there and standing in front of the elevator, blocking her way to the lobby.

“This is a joke Theodore, and we both know it. Accept your losses and back off.”

“No can do, Hermione,” he said. Her name off his tongue was incredibly creepy. She felt like there was a space reserved just for her in his dungeon now. “I’ll be making sure you’re back in my life whether you like it or not.”

“I’m so glad there’s a legal professional to hear that,” she said eyeing Zabini who was trying to ignore the conversation now. “Albeit a bad one. I’m glad that I have witnesses who could be compelled to testify or confirm my memories when you do something serial-murder-esque to me when this little scheme of yours doesn’t pan out.”

He looked angry, but he controlled it well, another trait seemingly required for Slytherin. Her roommate’s ability to look calm at all times was uncanny. 

“Watch it, mudblood. You should be more careful about what you say to your superiors, especially when they’re about to become your boss.” He leered at her and took the elevator away. 

She had to report this to Harry and the auror department immediately. More likely than not, they wouldn’t be able to do anything, but she at least wanted it on record. With Theo in bed with the likes of Lucius Malfoy and Dolohov, who knew what he would do.

**Draco Malfoy and Hermione Granger’s flat, Muggle London**

“Granger, you look like you’ve seen a ghost,” Draco said jokingly walking through the floo.

“Yeah, the ghost of fiances past.”

He rolled his eyes, “Seriously? He couldn’t even make two months before he bothered you? What did he do this time? Threaten to give you over to my father? Take you to the Wizengamot for some obscure 1400’s marriage law? Be a douche all over the Ministry and make a mess?”

“Called me a mudblood and is on a mission to get Charlie fired so that he can take over the project, get back into my life, and do who knows what. Probably force me to quit and be miserable.”

Malfoy’s face changed dramatically, and the next thing she knew, she was standing and engulfed in a hug. 

“First,” he said, pulling her to face him, “Nobody should ever call you that. Did you file a complaint?”

“Yes, mum.”

“Good,” he smirked. “Second, What a tosser. He gives a bad name to Slytherin, which is really saying something. Did he have Zabini with him?”   
  
“Yes, that’s who served the papers and gave me all this light reading on Charlie’s prior employment,” she said dully.

He rolled his eyes, “And to think I used to be ‘friends’ with those two. You’ll need a lawyer, and a good one who’s friendly with the nastier families who sit on the Wizengamot. Oh, right, you have a roommate with a law degree, and is the heir to both the Malfoy and Black fortunes… how convenient for you. I’ll do it free of charge obviously. Really stick it to father.”

“Get me some wine, and we’ll go over their case,” she said reluctantly. 

After a few hours of review, Hermione actually felt pretty good. She gave it a 1 in 8 chance that Theo got his death eater-sympathetic mitts on the reserve.

“Okay,” said Draco, pulling his glasses off and throwing them down on the coffee table. “Most of their claims are absolute dragon dung. But Nott and Zabini have pull with some of the pureblood families that aren’t my biggest fans right now. I have a feeling my mother will be planning some tea parties in the near future,” he said winking at her. 

Narcissa was a godsend. She had insisted that Hermione needed retail therapy when she had moved in with Draco. And Hermione found the witch surprisingly comforting to speak with. Narcissa also had the simultaneously amazing and annoying habit of sending french pastries actually made in Paris. She was also the one fueling Draco and Hermione’s wine habit.

“However, you need to talk to Charlie about this last file,” he said. “There are some unclear notes, and I’m fairly certain it was changed by his supervisor before it was submitted. I know that’s not going to be a fun conversation, but you need to do it.”

He gave a reassuring squeeze to her shoulder and cleared their wine. She had a trip to Scotland to make for the night.

**Great British Dragon Sanctuary, Somewhere near Inverness, Scotland**

When Hermione had arrived, the trainers were out doing evening rounds to learn the route and routine. She would have to wait for Charlie so she sat on the rustic fence outside his office. 

She found a sombre quiet hung over the reserve. It was essentially a large pasture without the fire breathing creatures to take up space and cause a little mayhem. Hermione found it to be too quiet at the current moment. She found that a little chaos was needed at all times, or complete peace. Her mind ran away from her at the speed of a firebolt if she was given too long to think. 

Waiting on Charlie Weasley was something she had been doing for entirely too long. After their night together, she had been unable to think of any other potential partners. Oliver Wood had tried to snog the living daylights out of her, claiming there was more chemistry between them than wood and broom polish, but she had politely declined a second date. Roger Davies had made it to the third date, but he was too full of himself. She had even tried to convince Justin Finch-Fletchly to be friends with benefits, but had back out when he had refused to eat her out. And obviously Theodore had been it’s own cauldron fire. She found that waiting for a Weasley man would really just be her lot in life.

Hermione was convinced that she and Charlie should have given it a real go, but he had never given them a chance. All she needed was a chance. Just like the reserve, she needed a chance to get it off the ground, because if she couldn’t get that, she would feel like a failure. Now Theodore was threatening to take that chance away as well.

She really was hoping that Draco had a lock on this and Charlie would be telling her it was just a paper mix up, no need to doubt him now. Theodore and Blaise would look like fools in front of the Wizengamot and that would be that. 

But if Charlie proved to be lying or at least not completely truthful, everything would be over. Hermione had no husband, her friends had all settled into their lives nicely, and she would fade into obscurity as the girl who couldn’t handle the task at hand. She would settle for a job at Hogwarts, where she could finish her transformation into a kneazle lady and die a spinster. That nightmarish vision conjured tears to the corners of her eyes.

“Curls, there’s literally smoke coming out of your ears. We should go to my office for a-” stopped Charlie when he saw her face. “Hermione, what’s wrong?”

“Maybe we should retire to your office, I could use a stiff drink for this conversation.” 

He sighed, helping her off the fence and inside. He also snuck her his flannel to wipe her eyes. 

“So what’s this emergency trip all about, Curls? Surely you could have waited for the weekend?”

She sighed, “I really couldn’t.” She paused. Hermione wasn’t sure what she was about to get into here. It was unchartered territory and she wasn’t sure their truce would make it through this. “What happened in your last month in Romania, Charlie?”

A glass shattered against the floor almost as soon as she finished speaking. Wandlessly and wordlessly she fixed the mess, turning to Charlie. 

“Why do you ask?” he said trying to brush away her attempts to check his arms. 

“Theodore Nott and Blaise Zabini showed up at Bagman’s office in a blaze of glory accusing you of falsifying your application and threatening to fire you.”

“What? That’s absurd, we-”

She held her hand up, “I’ve got it under control. Draco has offered to represent us at the hearing next week.”

“Next week? It’s supposed to be in a few months.”

“I know,” she sighed, “They filed their complaint and got the hearing moved up, but you need to tell me what happened. We need to have a response to everything. I’m sure they’re going to go after me as well, but the official reason for this circus is you.”

He took three extremely deep breaths. He poured two tumblers of fire whiskey and brought them to the wingback chairs in front of the fire.

“My buddy died at the reserve on one of my last assignments. I should have pulled him for the field, but I chose to take his word for it instead of trusting my gut.”

Hermione was shocked, that was not what she was expecting. This did not bode well. 

“I am so sorry Charles,” she offered weakly.

“It’s… it’s still raw. I’m sorry I never said anything. I didn’t even know about it until the next day. But, it should have been me. I should have taken his spot, but he insisted that he had gotten enough sleep and was ready to go.”

“So that’s why you blew up at me when we toured the reserve.”

He downed his drink, “Right in one.”

“Charlie, why would you try to hide that? It wasn’t your fault, you did what you thought was best.”

This seemed to confuse him, “I didn’t hide it… I told my supervisor, and put it in my report which should have been included in the application. But nobody ever asked about it. That’s- that’s why it’s still so hard to talk about. I haven’t had the chance to discuss it much.”

She reached across the gap of the chairs to take his hand. “I think your supervisor must have adjusted it to save you from a tough conversation. And, that means it’s not our problem. Draco will be able to handle this.” Hermione was confident. 

“Don’t fight for me, Curls. You could get in trouble yourself and I don’t deserve it. I should just step down now,” he hesitated, trying to pull his hand away. She grasped it tightly before starting to rant. 

“You will do no such thing,” she stood, moving to crouch in front of him and taking his other hand. “If you give up on this crazy plan of mine, Theo will take over and run this place straight into the ground. I won’t be able to stay on and would be miserable. Not even to mention all his friends on the black market who would have unlimited access to Welsh Greens. I just, we need to fight for what we believe in Charlie. Remember? We both have the same level of passion for this project, and I’m not letting my arsehole of an ex-fiance get in the way.”

He looked at her with compassion and fire before kissing the back of her hand. “You’re fighting for me like I should have fought for you all those years ago.”

“What?” That was a left turn if she had ever seen one. “What is that supposed to-” Her second rant in as many minutes was cut off by the heavenly mouth she hadn’t had the pleasure of kissing in years. She stood for more leverage and got lost in Charlie’s lips, his hands lost in those curls he seemed to love so much. 

By the time they pulled apart she was incredibly turned on and incredibly confused. 

“Curls, I can’t have this conversation right now and I can’t keep going, hell, we can’t keep going. If we’re going to win this case we need to present a united, un-involved front. But I promise, one way or the other, when this is all over, we’ll talk about us.”

He was right of course. Now was not the time to hash out their personal issues. This was it, this promise was her chance and she would hold him to it.


	5. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First, HAPPY FREAKING BIRTHDAY BELISAMA!
> 
> Second, I apologize for being MIA this week, I got fairly sick and didn't have time or energy to write. I promise it's not covid/corona, but it hit me hard. Now, I'm back and ready to finish this story. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy some pseudo-court room drama this chapter before we get to the fun stuff.

Draco Malfoy surveyed the lobby while Hermione stood beside him, anxiously awaiting their time to appear in front of the Wizengamot. Between the two of them, in addition to Hermione’s staffers, they had researched for what felt like longer than she ever had at Hogwarts. Malfoy had also found time to prep both her and Charlie for some sort of testimony. 

Although this was not a trial, merely a hearing about a Ministry funded project, she felt like she was being accused of murder. Nott had pulled out all the stops, and through Zabini had filed all types of shite motions. The main one focused on ousting Charlie, re-allocating funds because she was “spending” too much, and putting Theo and the old guard in charge. 

Hermione couldn’t help but fidget with her robes. She barely wore them, always hanging them on her office hook as soon as she arrived at work. But in order to look official, Draco had insisted that they dress to the nines. He had his outrageously expensive robes on, the ones custom fit to his size, with the new Malfoy crest and his initials embroidered into his cuffs. 

Not only was her normal anxiety through the roof egged on by doubts and worries of losing the reserve, but Charlie was late. He should have been here by now, and was a critical part of their case. 

“Where’s your boyfriend, Granger?” drawled Draco. He was always more stiff in public than when they sat on their couch at home. Appearances and such, but she didn’t take it personally. 

“He’s not my boyfriend, Draco. And I’m not sure. He said he would be here by now.” She looked around searching for a flash of red hair, but didn’t see one. The rest of his family had already made their way to the gallery, sitting through the proceeding hearing to make sure they had good seats and could support her. 

Harry had already stood with her for a while, calming her, and assuring that he would be there to testify to Theo’s shady dealings if it came to that. But he had gotten called back to the office for an urgent case. Dolohov had been spotted on the isles. Draco was muttering about shitty purebloods when that happened, and she desperately hoped Harry would be able to make it. 

Malfoy pulled out his emerald encrusted, snake engraved (obviously) pocketwatch to check the time. It was one of his tells that he was a little nervous. But his eyebrows rose slightly and he announced it was time to head down to the chamber. 

“But Charlie,” she started to complain, hesitating from taking Draco’s proffered elbow. 

“He’ll be here, Granger. This is important to him. If he’s a few minutes late, they’ll still let him in. But you and I need to go so that we make a good first impression.”

By the time they got into the chamber, many of the Wizengamot members had stepped away for their break. However, she could see many of the families who still thought her the scum of the earth to be huddled together in the back corner. 

Blaise and Theo were sitting at the table next to them, and with their impeccable manners, both stood when she entered the room and waited until she was seated to return to their seats as well. Inbreeding at least led to archaic manners that made her feel special, despite the fact that most of those purebloods didn’t think she was worth the air she breathed. Shaking her head she turned to Draco.

“Ready?” she asked. 

He scoffed, “Of course, we’ve got this in the bag. You’ll be rid of Theo soon. Especially if Potter makes it.”

Kingsley, the current Minister for Magic, entered the chambers and took his place at the podium. Everyone stood to acknowledge his calling for a two minute warning. As she sat back down, Charlie slid into the seat next to her.

She smacked his shoulder and did her best to yell at him without making a scene. “Where have you been?!” she whispered harshly. 

“A muggle stumbled into the gate this morning, literally. We had to convince him to walk away, and then I was flustered and it took me two jumps to get here,” he said apologetically. “But we’ve got everything under control and I’m ready.”

The hearing started like any bureaucratic gathering, lots of old white men rambling and ranting about unrelated things. Or making it about themselves. Lucius Malfoy even had the audacity to stand and support Theodore, instead of his son, even before arguments and questioning had started.

Blaise predictably monologued first about how much money the Ministry was wasting on ‘beasts’ instead of helping the war orphans. Then he had the audacity to say that the money was bleeding from the project because the two main people in charge were inexperienced. 

The first thing Draco said when he stood up gave her some confidence, “Yes, the witch who helped defeat Voldemort by the age of seventeen is inexperienced. The Order of Merlin - First Class recipient who has been in the Department of Wellbeing of Magical Creatures since she graduated from Hogwarts is inexperienced. Similarly, the Head Trainer at the reserve has been working with dragons since he graduated from Hogwarts, and has the most hands on experience of anyone the Ministry interviewed.” His sardonic, aristocratic tone suited him and the situation well.

“The issue here,” Draco continued, “Is not that the GBDS is a bad project, this is merely a case of revenge via Ministry regulations and changes. This is also an issue of old school versus new school. Certain  _ old families _ are worried about new  _ blood _ taking over. Let me remind all members of this esteemed organization of the law passed four years ago prohibiting any type of discrimination based on blood status. All you need to make this judgment today is how qualified these excellent Ministry workers are, and if you think saving the distinctly British subspecies of uniquely magical creatures whom we rely on with frequency. There is no need to encourage black market dealing, when everything can be done above board and with respect.” 

Draco was staring down his father during the last sentence, who in a very un-Lucius like move, jumped out of his chair and was seething down at his son. 

“Order, order!” cried Kingsley. “Thank you Mister Zabini, Mister Malfoy for those statements. Zabini, please lay out your evidence for disqualification.”

“Yes sir. We have pulled Charles Weasley’s past records and there are multiple discrepancies which Wizarding resources either ignored, or hired him in spite of this knowledge. One document states that there was an incident at the end of his time in Romania, whereas others do not. There is no official field report for whatever happened. There is also evidence to suggest that Mr. Weasley took extra field ”

“Mister Malfoy, your response?”

“Yes, sir,” said Draco standing and buttoning his robe. “I’d like to call Charles Weasley to discuss.”

Although he had been flustered when he originally arrived, he looked confident now. Luckily he was able to scrounge into one of Bill’s sets of dress robes. Sitting in the throne-like chair allotted for testimony, Charlie looked ready to take on the world. 

“Mr. Weasley, was there an incident at the end of your time on the Romanian reserve?” asked Draco. 

“Yes,” answered Charlie shortly. 

“Did you attempt to hide it during the hiring process?” questioned Draco. 

“No, nobody asked me about it while I was being interviewed.” Luckily Charlie had good reasoning for all the confusion. Hermione was confident that the more reasonable members of the Wizengamot would understand what happened. 

“Do you mind telling us what happened?” Draco was shifting from foot to foot. This must have been one of the questions that Charlie had a harder time with while they were practicing. 

“No,” said Charlie licking his lips. “Not at all. During the last week of my time in Romania, one of my coworkers… passed… while out in the field. He was working a shift that I was supposed to have, but couldn’t take. I think… I think in an effort to ensure there were no questions raised my supervisor removed the report I wrote and left it out of his. I have the memory available if needed.”

“That won’t be necessary Mr. Weasley,” stated Draco quickly. “As you can see, it was a simple mix up and nothing that Mr. Weasley did wrong. I think any reasonable person can see that although it is clearly a sad incident, Charlie Weasley did nothing wrong. How long did you work at the reserve in Romania?”

“About ten years,” he said. “Since I graduated.”

“Do you think you are well qualified for this role?” asked Draco.

Charlie smiled, “If you had asked me that a few months ago, I’m not sure what I would have said. Probably yes, but not very confidently. But now, yes. I am prepared for this and after picking and training my staff I am sure that this project will be successful. Of course, Ms. Granger has a lot to do with that.”

“How so?” asked Draco with a smile. He hadn’t mentioned that Charlie would be talking about her.

“Ms. Granger is an extremely capable project manager. Every detail is taken care of, and there is always a sense of justice and fairness in her work. Her biggest focus lately has been making sure that my staff and I have everything we need and are completely ready before transferring the dragons to us.” Charlie’s smile turned to her and it was incredibly endearing. She felt like there were multiple snitches flying around her stomach and throat. 

“Those are all the questions that I will ask, does anyone else wish to ask anything?” said Draco in a polite drawl. He controlled his eye roll, “Yes, Zabini?”

“Mr. Weasley, could you have prevented the death of your colleague?”

Charlie swallowed visibly, “No. As much as I would like to say ‘yes,’ not even my supervisor could have prevented it. My friend made a decision that he thought was best, but it ended up being the wrong decision.”

“Do you think that Britain  _ really  _ needs a sanctuary? There are plenty in other places with high wizarding population?” came a question out of turn from an unknown member.’’

“Absolutely,” Charlie answered with no hesitation. “The Welsh Green is incredibly endangered and as citizens of the UK, it is uniquely our problem.”

It carried on like this for almost a half an hour. Charlie was asked questions ranging from his expertise and the plans for the reserve to questions about his family. 

There was an extended pause and Kingsley asked for final questions. 

Theodore stood up and looked over at Charlie. “Are you positive that you and Hermione have no conflict working together?”

“Yes, although she’s been an unofficial member of my family, there are no issues.”

Theodore arched his eyebrow, “So you’re denying that you and Hermione are sleeping together…?”

His reaction to Theo’s question was as if he had been slapped. “Absolutely not. Our relationship is that of old friends and strictly professional.”

Thank goodness Charlie had the foresight to stop the other night or they would not have been able to answer this well with a straight face. 

Kingsley seemed satisfied and asked if Zabini wanted to put forth more evidence. Blaise looked a little flustered, but answered in the negative. 

“Mister Malfoy,” said Kingsley turning, “Do you have anything to add?”

“I do, sir.” Hermione was expecting him to call her next to speak at about the center. “I would ask that the Wizengamot take a vote of dismissal. I believe that there is not sufficient grounds to vote on changes to the sanctuary. Are you in agreement, Minister?”

Kingsley smirked, and nodded. “All those in favor?” Roughly ninety percent of the caucus raised their hands. “Motion granted, Mister Malfoy. Is that all for today, gentlemen?”

Theodore was seething, one would have thought a cauldron was on high boil in his ears. “No, not on this end, sir.”

“Mister Malfoy?”

“I have a motion that I wish for the Wizengamot to hear, and I believe we still have twenty minutes do we not?” Draco said all this very calmly as Charlie made his way back to the seat next to Hermione. 

“Do you know what’s going on?” she whispered. 

He shook his head, “Not a clue, but I’m sure Draco’s got this.”

“I would like to put forth two actually, one to get more funding for the reserve as Mister Weasley has clearly demonstrated the value of the project, and that they could always use more funding to improve safety measures to an even more impeccable standard to prevent possible fatalities of creature or trainer.” Hermione was having a difficult time keeping the look of shock off of her face. 

“I would be amenable to putting it to a vote, but I believe this will require a separate meeting. Your second request?”

“I’d like to call Mister Harry Potter to discuss the potential motives behind this farce of a hearing.”

Hermione was not ready for that either. She knew that Harry was planning on talking about Theo if the Wizengamot had decided that Charlie was not fit, but she didn’t think Draco would actually go after her ex-fiance. And his father no less. Draco Malfoy was about to make a big statement and it was either going to go smashingly or he was going to fall off his broom and never be able to show his face again. 

Harry coming into the chamber caused a large hush, as well as many confused looks. 

Draco spilled the family secrets, having Harry detail the contact between Theo and Lucius. Harry produced documents confirming the elder Malfoy’s request for a time turner, leading to more detail than she thought necessary about the break up of her engagement. 

“Mister Minister, I believe after you hear my next piece of evidence you will want to discuss funding further at this time.” Kingsley nodded at Draco to continue. “Mister Potter, can you tell the Wizengamot what this document is?”

“Yes,” Harry took a deep breath, “That is a Gringotts document showing that Mister Nott embezzled money from his ex-fiance Hermione Granger to fund his projects after he was fired by the Department of Mysteries.” 

Hermione gasped, grabbing her non-existent pearls. Draco continued quickly before complete pandemonium broke out. 

“And why did Mister Nott get fired from the Department of Mysteries, Potter?”

“Because he accessed the time room without authorization multiple times.” Harry looked directly at you as he finished, looking forlorn. This must have been part of an active investigation and he couldn’t have told her. 

Kingsley was forced to call for order. Even if they didn’t have a smoking time turner, they had Theo dead to right. 

“What do you suggest we do with this damning evidence Mister Malfoy? Is there to be a criminal trial in the near future for one of my Wizengamot members, as well as Mister Nott here?”

“I don’t think that Miss Granger wishes to press charges sir,” he said looking at her questioningly. Although she was as close to hatred as she could get with Theo, she didn’t wish Azkaban on anybody, so she shook her head vigorously. “I think that allowing the aurors to search for any time pieces, returning Miss Granger’s money and pledging money towards the reserve would be sufficient.” As Kingsley began to shake his head in agreement, Draco remembered something and raised his pointer finger in the air. 

“Actually, sir. One more thing. Mister Potter’s team has evidence to suggest that Mister Nott is in contact with one Antonin Dolohov,” he paused for dramatic effect, because of course he did. She was fairly certain Daphne Greengass gasped to fill the space. “We’d request that Mister Nott participate in an operation to catch this escaped Death Eater.”

Malfoy would have dropped the mic if he could. The hearing finished quickly, with Kingsley and the Wizengamot agreeing on Draco’s terms and adding the stipulation that Lucius had to give up his seat to Draco as a violation of his parole. 

Hermione was overjoyed to have maintained control of the reserve and that it would likely be blossoming with more money than she really knew what to do with. After thanking the Weasley’s in the lobby she couldn’t contain her excitement, attacking Charlie with a hug. 

“You were brilliant,” she declared. “What can I do to ever thank you?”

“You can let me take you to dinner this weekend.”


	6. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Charlie and Hermione _finally_ get their date.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't even begin to explain why it took me MONTHS to post this chapter. But I'm back, with my writing muse, and plan on trying to finish this one up. I work in the healthcare industry, have high-risk family members, have had to cancel my wedding twice, and these past months have been draining to say the least. My muse abandoned me for a bit, but I think she's back and even more confident than before!
> 
> I want to say THANK YOU to all of the readers who gave me encouraging comments. I'm guilty of getting frustrated with slow updates from authors too, and I appreciate that nobody made any mean comments. I know I posted some one-shots and some drabbles before finishing this, but I needed to come back to it. I was ashamed it took me so long and didn't want to disappoint anyone. But here it is, Charlie and Hermione finally getting some action (there are lemons in this chapter, you've been warned), and I hope you enjoy!

Hermione’s doorbell rang at five minutes to seven. She smoothed her skirt as a nervous tic before opening the door to find a handsome redhead waiting for her. 

“Miss Granger,” said Charlie very politely, complete with a mock bow at the waist. “Are you ready for our date?”

She crossed her arms over her chest and leaned into the door frame, shaking her head. “Aren’t I supposed to be taking you out to dinner?”

He smirked at her, “That you are,” he walked past her holding the door open. “But even though you’re in charge of this little date, I feel responsible for picking you up. Plus you kept the restaurant a secret all week.”

Hermione rolled her eyes. Charlie’s lack of patience was legendary in both the Weasley family and the dragon community. His fuse could spark and burn out in the blink of an eye. But it served him well and if she viewed it properly, it was endearing.

Luckily, Draco had already left for the evening and was not there to make things awkward or attempt to be a stand-in for a father figure, giving Charlie the third degree about his intentions. Draco had simply said, “You do you Granger, but don’t forget a silencing charm if you need one later,” winked at her, and left through the floo to Pansy’s place. Thank Gods Harry wasn’t her roommate.

“This place is incredible, Hermione. How-”

She sighed, “I moved in with Draco after I broke things off with Theo. Draco refused to let me look for another place, and although it’s not something I would choose myself… I do love it. Between you and me, I think he’s a little lonely and likes the company.”

Charlie nodded, hands fidgeting in his pockets, “Makes sense.”

As he wandered to the window to view the city, he tried to feign curiosity, “So, am I going to need some kind of weird muggle dining implement tonight?”

She laughed, “I’m not telling you where we’re going Charlie.”

In reality, she hadn’t decided until this morning where she would take him. The man was ‘worldly’ and she wanted to impress him, without draining her galleons, and evading the media. She had seen cameras everywhere following the hearing. The Prophet had somehow figured out she lived with Draco and they were having a field day about what they were calling “The Possible Wedding of the Millenium.”

Hermione desperately wanted to avoid being called a tart on everyone’s breakfast tables again. Even though Rita had been quietly pushed out after the War, someone had taken her place. The Prophet was really a disgrace to journalism. So they would be going to a corner pub near her parent’s old house. She took his arm once Charlie was done gawking at the skyline and apparated them away.

\--------------

“Seriously, Granger? You’re a vinegar girl?” he asked dramatically.

She shoved another chip and her mouth before retorting, “Better than a Brown Sauce man.”

Charlie smiled. He was glad that it had gone back to easy conversation with a little teasing. “Well then I’m definitely sharing my chips with you.”

“Who said I wanted you to share with you?” Her eyes looked at him beneath her lashes as she took a swig from her cider. They were on their second drink and first basket of chips. Maybe they would order food eventually, but conversation had been flowing well so far. Even though it wouldn’t have been his first choice, they had started with work, then gossiped about his siblings and their families, and then had finally moved to some semblance of reconnecting on a personal level.

Hermione had already caught him staring twice, but she had only called him out on it once. Her casual dress was very flattering, and he preferred a girl without all the frills. She looked a little wild with her curls piled up on top of her head, some desperately escaping to frame her face. Charlie was thanking Merlin and Nimue that he had gotten his second chance with the witch. He had really cocked it up that Christmas. 

Charlie was terrified of starting something so close to the war. He didn’t want to move back to London at the time, and he knew her career was important to her. In his experience, distance never really worked out which would force one of them to abandon Weasley family Christmases and dinners for the rest of eternity. He couldn’t have done that to her. 

But since that night, well early morning, in his room he couldn’t think of anyone else. She was the one he was wanking to at night, she was the one who filled his dreams, and she was the one he wanted. Until the project it hadn’t seemed possible. 

“Curls, I guess we just won’t ever see eye to eye,” he joked, cramping more chips into his mouth. Sure, his table manners should probably be better on a date, but they were at a pub. And he would never be as bad as his brother, Ron. 

“That’s why I like you so much. You don’t feel like you have to agree with me,” she said with a smile, drinking more of her cider. “Most people who don’t agree with me don’t actually push back or give me a real argument. But you do. I like going toe-to-toe with you Charles.”

Her smile was so bright, it gave him a lot of hope for what would come in the future, hell what could come tonight. 

“Should we order some real food?” he asked. 

She glanced at the menu, “Only if you agree to take me home to yours tonight.” The mischievous glance she wore on her face 

He cleared his throat, “You do know that my home is currently on a dragon reserve, right? My room has some comfort, but isn’t exactly your luxury apartment.”

“Oh, I’m _very_ aware of where you live right now. In fact, I’m in charge of the facility you see. I find the reserve to be… quiet, calm even. And very private. Nobody can bother us.”

“You’ve got a deal, Curls. Let’s eat.”

\--------------

Although Hermione had been brave while they were at the pub, as soon as she set foot back on the reserve outside Charlie’s, she was a little nervous. Yes, she wanted to jump Charlie the minute they were inside, but she was worried that they were moving too fast. 

Sure, they had already slept together, and it had been glorious. But that was a few years ago now, and they were co-workers. Which wasn’t against the rules, and the Wizengamot and Ministry had given them more funds than they knew what to do with. But Hermione desperately wanted this to work. She wasn’t sure what she would do if it didn’t. 

“Stop overthinking this, Curls. You’re the one who wanted to sleep with me. I know that I’m a beast in the sheets, but if you just want to sleep over, I’m totally okay with that,” he said, pulling her into his arms. 

She sighed, relishing the smell of him. “No, Charles. I want you. I just want to make sure that we don’t mess up like we did last time. I want this to work.” 

Sliding her chin up his chest to look up to him, he was smiling down softly. “I’ll take credit for the mess I created last time. You won’t be getting out of this too easily now.”

Hermione met him halfway in a searing kiss. Charlie was pouring his soul into her and she was lapping it up as much as she could. The connection she had always felt with him, even after Christmas, made her magic sing. The Earth was humming below them before he pulled back. 

“You felt that, right?” he whispered inches from her lips.

Hermione nodded, “Yes,” she whispered. 

“Good,” he smirked, “Now we know that it’ll work out. And with magical output like that, how could you ever leave?”

She lightly smacked him on the chest, but silently agreed. Their chemistry had just burned through her like a fire. Maybe it was the land on the reserve they were on, maybe it was the promise of what to come, and maybe it was just her biology, but she knew that it was going to work out. Her nervous energy was beginning to shift into a more sexually anticipatory nature. Hermione needed this man in a bed, or counter of some sort, and she needed him now. 

Hermione pulled Charlie down by the back of his neck, devouring his lips again. The heat passing between them began to overwhelm her despite her light dress for the evening. His hands were in her hair, trying their best to undo all her hard work to pull it up. 

When her curls finally came tumbling down, his hands began to glide down to her arse. They slid over her hips, slowly drawing all of her attention south. Charlie pulled her hips forward and she became aware of her affect on him. He was hard and straining in his trousers, pressing into her deliciously.

Once they were securely glued together, Charlie grabbed her arse and lifted her, allowing Hermione to wrap her legs around him. He hoisted her up further and began trudging into his cabin. 

Charlie stumbled them through the door, kicking it shut. She briefly considered telling him to just stop at the kitchen table but decided it was best to let Charlie drive right now. Distracting him and falling would certainly ruin the moment. He eventually had woven them into his bedroom when he set her down. 

Hermione tugged at the bottom of his shirt, trying to get it off of him as quickly as she could. Instead, Charlie vanished everything. 

“You know, Curls,” he whispered into her neck, “I would have taken my time, and trust me I will later, but I needed to see all of you.” His hands made their way back to her hips, pulling her back to him. Kisses lick flames down her neck as he makes his way to her breasts. Charlie alternates between licking, kissing, sucking, and nipping at her nipples, while squeezing and kneading with his hand on the opposite breast. 

Heat was spreading inside her, connecting her cheeks, stomach, and legs in a system of fire and smoke. Hermione mewled in response to Charlie’s attentions and began to walk backwards towards the bed. Sinking into the mattress, she grasped his hand against her breast and pulled him between her newly spread legs. 

Charlie’s eyes were sparkling as he thumbed her chin and grasped her jaw. In a moment of pure joy, he brushed the tip of his nose against hers back and forth. Temporarily disarmed by this boyish act, Hermione was shocked when Charlie began stroking her _other_ set of lips. 

“Charlie! Oh-”

“Yes, My Dear?”

“Just. Oh- Keep doing that, please!”

“As the lady commands.”

His palm, flat on her breast bone, gently pushes her back onto the bed as he sinks to his knees in front of her. Charlie’s tongue drags along her inner thighs as he places her ankles behind his head. She takes deep breaths in through her nose as subtly as she can, this man was driving her to the edge already and had yet to even show off. 

As if on cue, Charlie’s talented tongue swiped all the way up from her bum to her clit and provided yet another spark to fan the flames. 

“Yesss,” she moaned, threading her fingers into his hair, begging him to continue. He swirled around her clit, drawing even more of her essence out of her and onto his chin. The situation and their prior experience pushed Hermione to toe the edge of falling into a glorious orgasm. But just as she was about to jump, Charlie stopped her. 

“ _Charlieeee_ ” she whined. 

“Be patient,” he said chuckling. “We’ll get there together.”

Without waiting, Charlie boosted her hips up and pushed her back further onto the bed. Their hips connected again as her head found the pillow. The lack of fabric sent Hermione’s brain into a frenzy unlike their initial connection outside. Her blood was pumping and his was clearly living in his lower half. 

Charlie gripped himself and began to rub himself through her folds. Sparking nerve endings trailed upwards from between her legs, bringing her closer to the edge again. When Charlie finally pushed inside her, their reconnection felt complete. It felt right. 

She gasped as he dragged out and slid back in. Her hips started rising to meet him. 

“Hermione,” he groaned, “Are you trying to kill me?”

Hermione laughed before squeezing his arse at the top of the next stroke. Her cheeky grab broke some of the seriousness in the air and Charlie smiled. 

“Alright, Curls, if that’s how you want to play this, let’s go.”

Grabbing her hips, Charlie flipped them over to lay on his back. Once she had recalibrated, he was helping her grind down on him. She called upon her abs to give her strength and she started to let go. It was Charlie’s turn to start raising his hips to meet hers. Allowing his fingers freedom to find her clit.

After circling a few times, Charlie _finally_ helped Hermione jump off of the cliff into her first orgasm of the night. He slowed his own hips, allowing her to grind in whatever way she needed to ride it out. 

When Hermione’s eyes focused back on him, Charlie was smirking up at her. He flipped them back over and began to pick up the pace again. 

“Gods Hermione, you feel so good. I think I might crumble under regret.”

She shook her head, kissing down his neck, squeezing his hips, scratching his back to spur him on. Hermione felt the magic from outside begin to build again, jittery and dancing around them. It rose just like the ocean wave, cresting with them both on top, before dragging them underneath the water. 

After cleaning up and using the facilities, Hermione wrapped her arms around Charlie, and took a deep breath. She settled her head into his chest and said, “That was incredible. I’m not letting you sneak out tomorrow morning. Luckily you can’t run off to Romania either.”

“Well I could, Curls,” he chuckled. “But I’m not planning on it. No, I’ll be convincing you to move out here with me. Just you wait.”


	7. Epilogue

**Great British Dragon Sanctuary, Somewhere near Inverness, Scotland**

“Charles Arthur Weasley, we are going to be late!” Hermione yelled up the stairs. 

She heard a thump and then, “I’ll be down in a minute Curls!”

Hermione shook her head, looking around the cabin to make sure everything was in order. Hermione had only lasted about four months after the court case before moving in with Charlie. Even though the sanctuary had launched and dragons had been brought over, the work was never ending, so Hermione’s role shifted to the sanctuary full time. It only made sense, of course, that she lived there too. It was extra convenient that she could move in with her boyfriend. 

The same boyfriend… well, husband now, was making her late. 

“Seriously, Charlie. We need to go. Do you want to disappoint the little ones?”

The red head finally came clomping down the stairs in the sweater Molly had made two years ago. 

“You have the presents?”

She rolled her eyes, “Of course I have the presents.” Hermione held up her beaded bag. She, and the bag, were quite popular with all the nieces and nephews. 

Before she could run through the list in her head one more time, Charlie was pulling her into the floo and they were off. 

**The Burrow**

“Auntie Mi, Auntie Mi!” came squealing voices from all sides as her vision stopped spinning. 

Hermione was immediately surrounded by little ones, all wanting hugs, or high fives, or some sort of acknowledgement. 

Charlie stood next to her looking slightly put out. “Nobody wants to say ‘hi’ to Uncle Charlie? You know, the dragon handler?”

Harry and Ginny’s son James turned to look at Charlie and sweetly said, “Not really. Auntie Mi always has treats or gifts. And she _saved_ all the dragons, ‘member?”

“Fine, fine,” said Charlie in an overly loud voice, waving his arms in the air. “I see where I’m not needed.” The dramatics didn’t get him anywhere as all the children still waited for the ice mice Hermione was pulling out of her pockets. 

She watched as he went in search of his mum to check in before being quickly enveloped in a hug. 

“Harry,” she squeaked. “You need to tone it down a smidge.”

“Sorry, I just haven’t seen my favorite in-law for a couple months at this point.” 

“I know,” she sighed. “I”m sorry. First was the honeymoon, which was fabulous by the way, and then there of course was something wrong when we got back to the reserve. It’s mating season, you see, and-”

Harry just laughed. “We know. Take your love of working until something’s done, and Charlie’s passion and you get two hermits who never leave their place of employment. The kids are very excited to see you.”

“Speaking of children, where’s that new baby of yours?”

Eventually she found Ginny and Albus and got her baby fix for the evening. Charlie found her snuggling the boy on the love seat and joined her. 

“Mum says hi, and she’s excited that we’re back. Can’t wait to hear about the trip.”

She nodded. 

“Being an Aunt looks good on you. I’m sure you’d also be a great mum,” he whispered. 

Charlie knew not to let Molly hear them talking about it. Neither of them were sure that they wanted children. The sanctuary was essentially a rebellious teenager on it’s own. Maybe it would happen, maybe it wouldn’t. But right now she was content with being the best Auntie Mi ever. 

“Thanks, Charlie. We’ll see what happens. For now, I’ll keep sneaking treats and hoping that they can pronounce Hermione soon. The nicknames are driving me crazy.”

“Love you, Curls.”

“Love you too, Charles.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you enjoyed this short, sweet, and fluffy epilogue to wrap things up for our pair. 
> 
> Thanks to all the readers for sticking with me on this one, and happy (very belated) birthday Belisama! Love you girl :)


End file.
